Flight Changed Drastically - WWYD?

AllyReggie

Turkey Leg Hunter
Joined
Apr 21, 2013
Booked a flight with AA after serious research, planning and prep. We are flying in September, so there is still plenty of time before our trip, but our Reservations and Hotel Accommodations have been booked for some time.

I am not one to sweat the small stuff, but this feels more like a big issue than a small one, anyone here have any experience getting compensated for major flight changes?

Original Flights:
To WDW:
Depart @6:00P Arrive 5:30A(Next Day)
From WDW:
Depart @7:30P Arrive 12:30A(Next Day)

Now both flights have been altered,

To WDW:
Depart @8:00A Arrive 8:00P (10 Hours Earlier, and arriving same day instead of next day)
From WDW:
Depart @1:30P Arrive 7:30P (6 Hours Earlier)

Maybe I shouldn't be that frustrated, but to me it is a HUGE change. We now need to schedule off from work for our departure day, which we were originally not doing, we need a hotel room that night, and we are losing 6 park hours on our departure day. We aren't gaining any park hours on the front end to make up for this as the parks will be closed by the time we could get there on our arrival day, and due to our original arrival time we were already planning on a full day of vacationing.

What would you do? I am probably going to have to live with this, but I honestly want some kind of compensation. We didn't get cheap fares and the plane was over 1/2 full when we booked. The flight we were booked on appears to be GONE and there are no similar red eye flights in existence. I am just super stressed and miffed. In order to accommodate the additional night we are re-arranging our entire trip to hopefully make the most out of a bad situation, but we were already trying to do a lot and losing hours of our vacation is not making me happy. I don't want to yell at a poor customer service rep, but I'd feel better if I knew they understood that this was a very big change that is costing us over $1000 (there are four of us plus an infant) in taking time off and hotel and my time rescheduling and trying to accommodate the change.

If it had been 30 minutes, or an hour or two one way or the other, I'd have shrugged it off, but this is a lot more than that. Am I right in thinking I should call and get compensation? Or do I need to suck it up buttercup?
 
Booked a flight with AA after serious research, planning and prep. We are flying in September, so there is still plenty of time before our trip, but our Reservations and Hotel Accommodations have been booked for some time.

I am not one to sweat the small stuff, but this feels more like a big issue than a small one, anyone here have any experience getting compensated for major flight changes?

Original Flights:
To WDW:
Depart @6:00P Arrive 5:30A(Next Day)
From WDW:
Depart @7:30P Arrive 12:30A(Next Day)

Now both flights have been altered,

To WDW:
Depart @8:00A Arrive 8:00P (10 Hours Earlier, and arriving same day instead of next day)
From WDW:
Depart @1:30P Arrive 7:30P (6 Hours Earlier)

Maybe I shouldn't be that frustrated, but to me it is a HUGE change. We now need to schedule off from work for our departure day, which we were originally not doing, we need a hotel room that night, and we are losing 6 park hours on our departure day. We aren't gaining any park hours on the front end to make up for this as the parks will be closed by the time we could get there on our arrival day, and due to our original arrival time we were already planning on a full day of vacationing.

What would you do? I am probably going to have to live with this, but I honestly want some kind of compensation. We didn't get cheap fares and the plane was over 1/2 full when we booked. The flight we were booked on appears to be GONE and there are no similar red eye flights in existence. I am just super stressed and miffed. In order to accommodate the additional night we are re-arranging our entire trip to hopefully make the most out of a bad situation, but we were already trying to do a lot and losing hours of our vacation is not making me happy. I don't want to yell at a poor customer service rep, but I'd feel better if I knew they understood that this was a very big change that is costing us over $1000 (there are four of us plus an infant) in taking time off and hotel and my time rescheduling and trying to accommodate the change.

If it had been 30 minutes, or an hour or two one way or the other, I'd have shrugged it off, but this is a lot more than that. Am I right in thinking I should call and get compensation? Or do I need to suck it up buttercup?
Don't worry about compensation -- get better flights or cancel.

I've had this happen occasionally with American, and I'm sure it happens with other airlines as well. You book great flights WAY in advance, and then something changes.

In your particular case, the change may be due to the problems with the 737 MAX aircraft. AAL just extended their grounding of the MAX aircraft through September in the last day or two. (So did SWA)

Call them and work out flights that work better for you. If that is not possible, ask for a full refund and go elsewhere. Even if you booked non-refundable flights, you can often get full refunds if they make such a huge change.
 
I fly AA quite a bit and they're really good about working with you when flights change. Just find a flight you like better and call them to change it.
 
Not sure off AA's policies, but with other airlines I have used, they usually give you options (such as cancelling flight/changing to a different one, etc.) if the change doesn't work with your travel plans.
 


Don't worry about compensation -- get better flights or cancel.
I fly AA quite a bit and they're really good about working with you when flights change. Just find a flight you like better and call them to change it.

I am still trying to search, but it looks like all the red-eye flights that would have worked for us are gone. I am hoping I find something, but it seems like all the flights that were similar have completely dissipated. I don't even see a lot of the competitor flights for that same time frame anymore.

In your particular case, the change may be due to the problems with the 737 MAX aircraft. AAL just extended their grounding of the MAX aircraft through September in the last day or two. (So did SWA)

I thought about that, and it probably is the case, but I made certain to book flights that were NOT MAX aircraft on the off chance they extended the grounding, but they probably have other more important flights that they had to move around, so I guess it makes sense that they'd cancel a red eye to accommodate more commuter trips. Ugh.

I am not optimistic that there is anything similar to my flight available, even on another airline. I guess I will report back if I find something that I can change to.
 
I thought about that, and it probably is the case, but I made certain to book flights that were NOT MAX aircraft on the off chance they extended the grounding, but they probably have other more important flights that they had to move around, so I guess it makes sense that they'd cancel a red eye to accommodate more commuter trips. Ugh.
Exactly. Everything is connected to everything else. Issues don't have to directly affect your aircraft to mess up your travel plans.

My experience with AAL has been the same as Darcy's above. Whenever there has been a problem (rare), they have been great to work with. See what you can work out with them.

If you have to go a day early to save your vacation plans, maybe they will compensate you somehow. Even if they don't, an extra night's hotel bill might be worth it to save your plans.
 
Here is what AA shows for red eye flights for my date and desired time-frame.
The best option is actually awful because it involves two stops... I really don't want to have to deplane twice with a 1 1/2 year old...
408806

And for the return flight, they just don't have any departures later than 1pm which still cuts my departure day plans. I think if anything I am going to need to see about a flight the next day (a sunday) and possibly book an extra hotel night... one way or another it seems like an extra hotel night is in my future.
 


FWIW, don't know your dates, but I checked some random dates in September (9-16), and AAL did have a redeye from PDX-DFW-MCO.

You might also check SEA -- I saw a couple of redeyes there as well.
 
FWIW, don't know your dates, but I checked some random dates in September (9-16), and AAL did have a redeye from PDX-DFW-MCO.

You might also check SEA -- I saw a couple of redeyes there as well.

Yeah, I may have to drive up to Seattle (a 3-4 hour drive, but still) to get the flight I want! Ah the things we do for vacation!
 
Yeah, I may have to drive up to Seattle (a 3-4 hour drive, but still) to get the flight I want! Ah the things we do for vacation!
I've done that drive for better flights (and even to see a baseball game before flying home). It's not a bad drive.
 
Another option -- SEA to MIA, non-stop. That's a 4-hour drive on both ends, but non-stop. I don't think there are non-stops to anywhere else in FLA.
 
that is a significant change and the airline will work with you as much as they can. I have had similar flights cancelled and they have put me on earlier and more expensive flights at no cost. Good luck!
 
Driving several hours to a different airport can be tricky. You need to allow plenty of extra time in case of delay getting to that airport and the result might be no different from leaving the day before from your original airport.

Are there no suitable flights showing at all if you searched on line to pretend to make a new reservation, or did the person you talked to on the phone just say the flights were not available?

I always suggest starting by hand picking alternate flights that would work for you and then calling to make a re-change in response to their change.

Include nonstops, if any work for you, in your hand picks.

Ignore the price of your hand picks, they should be able to make the re-change for you with no added fees or fare differences (you would not get any fare reduction credits either).

If you do see something you like but get a stubborn agent on the phone who won't book it for you, say you will think about it but do not accept their change and do not try to make new seat assignments. Wait an hour and try again. If the second time does not go well, ask for a supervisor on that call.
 
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We had a similar issue when flying to Rome in April. Aer Lingus neglected to account for the Daylight Savings time change occurring in Europe during our redeye flight until 2 weeks before our trip, then they realized we would not be able to make the connecting flight we booked. We lost 10 hours in Rome because of their screwup. We could have gotten a refund, but at only 2 weeks out there were no other flights that weren't ridiculously expensive, so we sucked it up.
 
Another option -- SEA to MIA, non-stop. That's a 4-hour drive on both ends, but non-stop. I don't think there are non-stops to anywhere else in FLA.

Could always skip the drive part and either fly PDX->SEA (or SFO? SLC?) for a better flight option. Seems to be as low as $120/person in September for roundtrip. Or fly at the MIA->MCO end (that's a bit more). That'd probably require a different airline than American though, and I don't know how tough getting a refund would be despite them changing the flight so significantly.

Edit: I found an AA flight that might work okay going. AA 1929 22:34 PDX->CLT, 1h5m layover, AA 2114 CLT->MCO 09:23. There's even better ones on other airlines like UA 2233/2237 19:03 PDX->SFO->MCO 6:05.
 
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Booked a flight with AA after serious research, planning and prep. We are flying in September, so there is still plenty of time before our trip, but our Reservations and Hotel Accommodations have been booked for some time.

I am not one to sweat the small stuff, but this feels more like a big issue than a small one, anyone here have any experience getting compensated for major flight changes?

Original Flights:
To WDW:
Depart @6:00P Arrive 5:30A(Next Day)
From WDW:
Depart @7:30P Arrive 12:30A(Next Day)

Now both flights have been altered,

To WDW:
Depart @8:00A Arrive 8:00P (10 Hours Earlier, and arriving same day instead of next day)
From WDW:
Depart @1:30P Arrive 7:30P (6 Hours Earlier)

Maybe I shouldn't be that frustrated, but to me it is a HUGE change. We now need to schedule off from work for our departure day, which we were originally not doing, we need a hotel room that night, and we are losing 6 park hours on our departure day. We aren't gaining any park hours on the front end to make up for this as the parks will be closed by the time we could get there on our arrival day, and due to our original arrival time we were already planning on a full day of vacationing.

What would you do? I am probably going to have to live with this, but I honestly want some kind of compensation. We didn't get cheap fares and the plane was over 1/2 full when we booked. The flight we were booked on appears to be GONE and there are no similar red eye flights in existence. I am just super stressed and miffed. In order to accommodate the additional night we are re-arranging our entire trip to hopefully make the most out of a bad situation, but we were already trying to do a lot and losing hours of our vacation is not making me happy. I don't want to yell at a poor customer service rep, but I'd feel better if I knew they understood that this was a very big change that is costing us over $1000 (there are four of us plus an infant) in taking time off and hotel and my time rescheduling and trying to accommodate the change.

If it had been 30 minutes, or an hour or two one way or the other, I'd have shrugged it off, but this is a lot more than that. Am I right in thinking I should call and get compensation? Or do I need to suck it up buttercup?
You are entitled to a refund, even if your ticket is "nonrefundable", because of the schedule change. Just apply for one on their website on the basis of their schedule change & you'll get it. I've gotten "nonrefundable" flights refunded by American for just a two hour schedule change on their part.
 
I don't get the issue you went from sleeping in an airport terminal/airplane with your first flight to getting in at 8pm? Why not book a cheap hotel by the airport and then go to Disney the next day like you planned? For the return possibly see if there is another option?
 
It would be helpful if you could provide the dates of your trip. With actual dates, people (myself included) will be glad to search for options for you.

Also, if you can provide the cost of the flights, that would help, too. As noted, you can cancel nonrefundable tickets in this situation for a full refund. That allows you to rebook on a different airline or airlines. In some situations, that can be the best option.

I don't want to yell at a poor customer service rep, but I'd feel better if I knew they understood that this was a very big change that is costing us over $1000 (there are four of us plus an infant) in taking time off and hotel and my time rescheduling and trying to accommodate the change.

Please note that as of now, nothing is costing you $1,000. You have several options, including switching to basically any other American Airlines flights for free.

I get that this is a stressful situation. I've personally had this exact scenario happen to me twice. Try to relax a little and let some of us help by providing some details about your trip. Many of us are quasi-experts about this sort of stuff .

Silver Lining: The major US airlines (American, Delta, Southwest, United) are great about working with customers impacted by schedule changes. If you had booked on a ultra low cost carrier (Spirit, for example), you'd have almost no options available to you.
 
Using itamatrix.com or kayak.com or hipmunk.com or Google flights (or all of them), find flights that work with your original plans.

If they're still on AA, great. Call and tell the reservationist which flights to change you to. If not on AA, have them cancel your flights and refund you, then book on another airline.

worst case you end up staying with there's flights? At least you'll have gotten a good night's sleep in real beds, instead of spending your first day in red eye exhaustion.
 
I appreciate all of you guys offering to help, but I am not a noob when it comes to searching flights. The FIRST thing I did when I got the email is search every website for comparable flights at comparable cost that fit my critera:

Travel Dates/Times:
To WDW
9/13 (Arriving AM 9/14) PDX - MCO
From WDW
9/21 (Arriving AM 9/22) MCO - PDX

I'd prefer to arrive early in the morning on 9/14 as this gives me the whole day at the parks
I'd prefer to depart at the EARLIEST 4pm on 9/21 as this gives me a few hours at a park or Disney springs on my departure day

I paid 2565.00 for Five Tickets through AA on my AA CitiCard. I'd really really really like to avoid going to another brand as I'd lose out on miles.

I think I am just screwed. Which sucks because, even though I know there is isn't anything AA could have done to keep my flight intact, it would be nice to get something for the trouble...oh well.

I posted to a consumer advocacy group, and they basically confirmed the same thing - I am going to have to accept the flight, cancel and book a new one or find something that works better and ask for that. But none of those options solve my problem so... thats life!
 

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